How to install the latest java version in Raspbian (Stretch)

Introduction

The default version of java provided in the latest raspbian images are outdated, so we are going to install from the ppa:webupd8team/java repository instead. Please note that add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/java will not work, so we will need to add the repository manually.

Installation

1. First we need to register the GPG key (required for authentication). So lets create a temporary file and paste the public key there.

   nano key.txt

   -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
   Version: SKS 1.1.5
   Comment: Hostname: keyserver.ubuntu.com
   
   mI0ES9/P3AEEAPbI+9BwCbJucuC78iUeOPKl/HjAXGV49FGat0PcwfDd69MVp6zUtIMbLgkU
   OxIlhiEkDmlYkwWVS8qy276hNg9YKZP37ut5+GPObuS6ZWLpwwNus5PhLvqeGawVJ/obu7d7
   gM8mBWTgvk0ErnZDaqaU2OZtHataxbdeW8qH/9FJABEBAAG0DUxhdW5jaHBhZCBWTEOImwQQ
   AQIABgUCVsN4HQAKCRAEC6TrO3+B2tJkA/jM3b7OysTwptY7P75sOnIu+nXLPlzvja7qH7Wn
   A23itdSker6JmyJrlQeQZu7b9x2nFeskNYlnhCp9mUGu/kbAKOx246pBtlaipkZdGmL4qXBi
   +bi6+5Rw2AGgKndhXdEjMxx6aDPq3dftFXS68HyBM3HFSJlf7SmMeJCkhNRwiLYEEwECACAF
   Akvfz9wCGwMGCwkIBwMCBBUCCAMEFgIDAQIeAQIXgAAKCRDCUYJI7qFIhucGBADQnY4V1xKT
   1Gz+3ERly+nBb61BSqRx6KUgvTSEPasSVZVCtjY5MwghYU8T0h1PCx2qSir4nt3vpZL1luW2
   xTdyLkFCrbbIAZEHtmjXRgQu3VUcSkgHMdn46j/7N9qtZUcXQ0TOsZUJRANY/eHsBvUg1cBm
   3RnCeN4C8QZrir1CeA==
   =CziK
   -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
   

   You can get this key directly from the launchpad page (refer to the Signing Key link under “Technical details about this PPA”).

2. Now use apt-key to register the key

   sudo apt-key add key.txt

3. Add the repository to /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ and perform an update

   echo "deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/webupd8team/java/ubuntu xenial main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/webupd8team-java.list
   echo "deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/webupd8team/java/ubuntu xenial main" | sudo tee -a /etc/apt/sources.list.d/webupd8team-java.list

   sudo apt-get update

4. Install Java 8 SDK

   sudo apt-get install oracle-java8-installer

5. Verify that we have successfully installed java

   pi@raspberrypi:~# java -version
   java version "1.8.0_161"
   Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_161-b12)
   Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 25.161-b12, mixed mode)

Switching between versions

If you have multiple jvms installed and you want to switch back to a specific version of java you can do the following:

Option 1: Using update-java-alternatives (Recommended)

1. List the available versions in your system

   update-java-alternatives -l

2. Copy the key of the first column of the result of your target version

   java-8-oracle                  1081       /usr/lib/jvm/java-8-oracle

3. Execute the set command using the previously copied key

   update-java-alternatives -s java-8-oracle

Option 2: Using oracle-java8-set-default package

sudo apt-get install oracle-java8-set-default